Eagles Have Landed

[MU Chi_IL]

Nice shot of DJ on the front page of ESPN's College hoops page

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/

Team of the Week: Marquette Golden Eagles
Last week: Won at Notre Dame 71-64; beat Georgetown 94-82.

The Golden Eagles are 8-0 in conference, 19-2 overall. Let that slide down your palate for a second. As much as any team in the Big East, Marquette is deserving of being considered a league favorite and possible No. 1 seed.

Yes, the nonconference résumé isn't strong. The win over Wisconsin doesn't look as good now. The loss to Tennessee in Nashville doesn't, either, and the "good" loss to Dayton on a neutral court is still a loss to a second-place A-10 team. The best nonconference win came against a lower-level ACC team -- at NC State -- on a last-possession shot.

But what happens if Marquette wins the Big East? Isn't this the best conference in the country? If so, shouldn't the best team in the best conference be rewarded? This would be an interesting test case for the selection committee if this were to occur because Marquette's body of work doesn't compare to that of Pitt or Connecticut. But like Louisville, which is also undefeated in the league, struggling in the nonconference isn't a true indicator of this team's true potential.

Marquette still has its most difficult slate ahead with three straight road games pending, albeit two of them against bottom-feeders DePaul and South Florida, before a trip to Villanova. But the final five daunting games might not be as mountainous for the Golden Eagles.

Marquette visits Georgetown, a team it just beat. Then the Golden Eagles host Connecticut at the Bradley Center, where they're extremely tough to beat. Going to Louisville and Pitt back-to-back is the toughest chore any team will have this season in the Big East, but the regular-season finale against Syracuse doesn't look as intimidating. If Marquette can reach the road swing to Louisville and Pitt with one loss or none, the Golden Eagles will have to be taken very seriously for a high seed.

No team in the league has as experienced a backcourt as Jerel McNeal, Wesley Matthews and Dominic James. The play of Lazar Hayward as a face-up forward has been solid so far. The players love playing for Buzz Williams and the mojo with this crew is as smooth as any team's recently.